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several caught in a blinding snowstorm on drifting ice while crossing the Strait from Cape Tormentine. They were lost for two days during which time they had to burn one of the ice boats to keep warm. To quote: “There were but two matches, no axes, no food and two compasses pointing in different directions.”12

It was a tragic experience from which the Doctor never fully recovered. Ironically he was, at the time, a member of the Select Committee appointed by the House of Commons to consider the question of better travel connec- tions with the mainland.” News of the disastrous crossing was carried by newspapers across Canada and eventually improvements were made. Dr. Angus McLean of Belfast, Prince Edward Island came to Souris shortly after his 1882 graduation from the University of Pennsylvania. He served the area for many years until his death in 1933. Dr. James Chester Houston of New Glasgow, Prince Edward Island graduated from McGill in 1898 and came to Souris in 1900. He married Gertrude, daughter of Uriah Matthew. When he left in 1908, he was replaced by Dr. John T. Sullivan who remained until 1922 before going west to Melville, Saskatchewan. Dr. A.A. MacLel- lan, an 1889 graduate of McGill, practised in Souris until going to Summer- side in 1904. He remained there for eleven years before moving to Montreal.

In 1904, Souris welcomed a young doctor who was to serve a wide area of Eastern Kings for sixty years. Dr. Augustine A. MacDonald was no stran- ger to Souris. As a young boy he lived for a time with his Uncle, Father Donald MacDonald, Parish Priest of Souris. He attended school in the Agricultural Hall located west of Chapel Avenue, just below St. Mary‘s Convent. After his graduation from St. Dunstan’s Col- lege in 1895, he taught school for three years before going to McGill Medical School. He graduated in 1902. He then worked a summer in Boston and prac- tised a year in Mount Stewart before coming east to Souris with his bride, Estelle Lachance of Ganonoque, Quebec.” ,

But facts and figures do not convey the warm affection the people had for

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Dr. Augustine Dr Gus as he was called For man . , - y 1:333:318 MacDonald years, he travelled in winter by horse

and sleigh to homes from East Point to Annandale. Older residents relate the feeling of peace and trust he brought to the sick and talk ofhis uncanny ability to diagnose an illness accurately.15

When the Doctor answered a call, he never knew what lay ahead of him. In the summer of 1910, he entered a McCormack farm home to find a four year old boy who had both legs severed just above the ankles. Only the Achilles tendons were still attached. He had been standing unseen in the hay field as his father passed with the mower.

Both parents were very upset, the mother in particular. She would not allow the Doctor to sever the ankles completely. And so, on the table in the